Most of us know someone who is characteristically happy, as if they are the embodiment of sunshine. Most of us also know the human form of a thundercloud, or perhaps even a tropical storm, spewing unhappiness and negativity into the ether. Why are some people happier than others? You may or may not be surprised to know that it is not due to life circumstances.
Happiness Is In your Genes
If you are a parent, you may wonder why one of your children spends their days giggling while the other seems to have come out of the womb blind with rage. Is happiness something we are born with? According to science, there is truth in that and we are born being prone to positivity or negativity and those of us prone to negativity are more likely to be anxious and have more difficulty recovering after negative experiences. According to twin studies, 50-80% of the differences in their average happiness levels are due to genetic differences rather than life experiences.
People with more positive emotions tend to approach things more while those with negative emotions avoid them. The balance between these two makes up your average level of happiness which is called your set point. Studies by neuroscientists performed on subjects as young as 10 months old have determined that people with more brain activity in the left side of their brains are more likely to experience positive emotions meaning they are more likely to move towards things in life. Fearful people have more activity in the right side of their brains, are more likely to move away from things, and have difficulty loosening up.
The Happiness Formula
Understanding that people have set points explains why things that are supposed to make us happy don't last for very long. The shine quickly wears off and we are back to our old selves because we adjust unless things progressively get better. It also explains why some people are happy with nothing while others can be unhappy anywhere. Now, before you slap a “genetically unhappy” label on your forehead, it is not all doom and despair because genetics are not the only things that constitute overall happiness. So, what does? Science has given us a handy dandy happiness formula: S (biological set point) + C (life conditions) + V (voluntary activities) = H (overall happiness).
In terms of our set point, it can be adjusted via therapy or medication. However, I want to focus on things that are available to everyone as many of us cannot afford therapy.
Life Conditions
As for what we can control, the conditions of our lives are sometimes unchangeable and there is simply nothing we can do. However, research also shows that, in the same way that we get used to nice things, we also adjust to undesirable things (as long as it is not progressive) and eventually return to our set point even in extreme cases such as paralysis. There are some life conditions, however, that we never adjust to which have proven to be interpersonal conflict (fighting with a partner), noise, long commutes, and a lack of control. Depending on your situation, you may have control over some of these aspects such as being in a toxic relationship. On the other hand, you may not have the finances to leave a noisy apartment building or there may be construction going on next to your home.
Creating Flow With Voluntary Activities
The part of the happiness formula that we generally have control over is V, voluntary activities, hence the word “voluntary.” According to science, there is something that provides us even more satisfaction than eating or other pleasures and that is being in a state of flow. Flow is the state that we achieve when we engage in something that is not too challenging or too easy. For something to put you in a state of flow, it has to grab your attention and you have to have skills parallel to the challenge at hand. It has been described as a state where you are completely focused on the task at hand, tuned in to whatever you are working on, you are in the zone where you want to keep working and it seems almost effortless. In order to find activities that put you in the zone, you should focus on your strengths which may vary from a love of learning, to generosity, to creativity. If showing gratitude is one of your strengths, organizing “thank you” cards, or taking the time to write out a thoughtful message may put you into a state of flow. I, for one, love making beautiful things or arranging things to be beautiful because one of my biggest strengths is awe and appreciation. So, making a new dessert, lighting a candle while I paint a picture, or doing pilates (which makes me feel beautiful), all put me in a state of flow.
The best thing about voluntary activities is that they can cost you little to nothing to do. It doesn’t cost you anything to follow a pilates workout on youtube, write a letter on a scrap of paper, or go for a walk outside. Science says that a combination of pleasures, such as eating, combined with daily states of flow will boost your overall happiness level. It is important to mix it up and not make your voluntary activities a chore. Variety is the spice of life and can make you an overall happier person while also improving your skills since challenge is required to achieve flow.
Flow and Happiness
“Flow,” has been my word of 2024 and it is the word I hone in on throughout my day and the sensation this word creates can be described as a piece of linen blowing in the breeze. I stumbled across this concept when I began teaching myself how to paint with watercolor. The process gave me such a feeling of peace that time stopped and my mind quit racing from one topic to another. Painting required my complete focus and I could see my progress with every brushstroke. This is why, I believe, many people consider activities like cleaning, working out, and reading, as therapeutic and almost like a meditation of sorts because, in essence, being in flow is a meditation - a strong focus on one thing. Striving towards a daily sense of flow has had a profound effect on my happiness and I believe it is because of the very fact that my mind quits racing and I become less scatterbrained, more at one with what I am doing.
Final Thoughts
From everything we have gathered, we can see that while genes do play a role in our happiness level, we can take concrete steps to boost our happiness in other areas. Engaging in states of flow not only makes us feel better but also allows us to improve our skills and engage in activities we enjoy.
Let us know what you think! I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions or if you’ve experienced something similar. If you enjoyed this article and are interested in more psychology topics, subscribe to our newsletter & leave a comment! As always, thank you for reading!
It might be , happiness is based on many sub-topics.
Yes that is definitely true.